Zuma’s tryst with destiny?

IT HAS taken the ruling ANC more than 22 years to begin to formally terminate its honeymoon with “political freedom” sans “economic emancipation”.

The point of endurance had been unacceptably stretched during the kerfuffle over the economic empowerment of South Africa’s black population. The flak had largely been directed at “the ownership and leadership patterns” of the economy.

Was the Rubicon crossed last Thursday, when President Jacob Zuma presented his State of the Nation address (Sona)?

First, there was the government’s complete inability to cope with the chronic problem of land ownership by blacks.

Zuma said: “Only eight million hectares of arable land have been transferred to black people, which is only 9.8% of the 82 million hectares of arable land in South Africa.”

The attempt by segments within the ANC to be too clever by half and distance themselves from their own government also came a cropper.

Few, if anyone, bought the ingenuous argument that consumers were paying more for milk, bread, mealie meal, sugar or onions because the previous administrations erred in their assessment of the global economic trends or that the changing weather patterns were impacting unsparingly on food security.

Second, the ANC’s benign neglect of investment in infrastructure is beginning to manifest itself in bottlenecks and disruptions. Several parts of the country are still being plagued by unbearable power and water cuts.

The metropolitan and big cities’ business hubs have been disrupted by the failure of successive administrations to upgrade their energy and water supplies; harbours, road and rail networks or information technology. Never mind fulfilling the pledge of a “better life for all” by upgrading its schools, hospitals and other social welfare institutions.

Third, the explosion of private agendas is making govern- 20 000 young blacks took to the streets of Johannesburg demanding that one of the country’s big four banks pay back its R2.2 billion apartheid bailout debt. Those who persist in caricaturing the Zuma imagery perceivably haven’t got the hang of his own tryst with destiny.

Not even the provocations of a bunch of opposition EFF louts succeeded in distracting Zuma from making his annual statement on the state of the nation.

An incident in 1976 in the British House of Commons resonated in the House of Assembly when Zuma rose to speak last week.

Leader

Michael Heseltine was a renowned British politician who, many believed, should have been the leader of the Conservative Party after Margaret Thatcher was unceremoniously dumped.

There are many reasons why Heseltine never made it to the top job – he was seen as too liberal, too flamboyant and too individualistic – but one thing that was always held against him was his moment of excitable indiscretion.

Provoked by a group of socialists singing the Red Flag in the House of Commons, Heseltine picked up the ceremonial mace and twirled it menacingly.

No harm was done and Heseltine was duly reprimanded by the Speaker (he may even have been suspended for a few days).

However, this incident, for which he was instantly dubbed “Tarzan” by the media, continued to haunt Heseltine for the rest of his days in active politics. His momentary lapse into indecorous behaviour became a permanent blot on his character.

It would have been so refreshing if the South African political class of the past three years applied the same exacting standards of parliamentary conduct on our MPs. Far from it.

Nanackchand is a senior journalist